5 ms·

Serious question, is this normal for TC or journalism in general? > We are actively reporting this; feel free to reach out to me or other staffers at TechCrunc

Serious question, is this normal for TC or journalism in general? > We are actively reporting this; feel free to reach out to me or other staffers at TechCrunch if you have tips here. Seems wildly unprofessional/sloppy to me.

kevingadd 7y ago
It's very common lately for online press when it comes to breaking news. I see it from many outlets not just TC
sgrove 7y ago
I believe their entire credibility model is largely based on this, as per the TechCrunch founder himself at Startup School back in 2008 https://youtu.be/HbUnatPfSgg?t=238 https://youtu.be/HbUnatPfSgg?t=238 (the whole talk is certainly a trip back in time!) I remember listening to that and thinking, "So.... the info I have on close friends and business is valuable, and I should potentially sell it out to TC in order to curry favor." I wasn't in SVBA at the time, and even then I felt that it didn't quite match the spirit of the valley (I still believe that to be the case, having been here for 10+ years now).
manfredo 7y ago
Requests for people with firsthand accounts are things I see from reputable sources like the Economist, and the New York Times. So I don't think it's particularly unprofessional - maybe asking for "tips" is less professional than "we welcome hearing your accounts of the events". That said, I don't hold Tech Crunch in very high regard. I take most of their reporting with a grain of salt, and assume most articles are exaggerated to attract more attention.
simtel20 7y ago
The only thing that makes a journalist a journalist is having sources. Any reasonable solicitation for those sources is professional and appropriate.
blawson 7y ago
The BBC has (and has been made fun of for having) a text box at the bottom of a lot of their articles requesting input from readers on how they are impacted: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51949243 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51949243 Making fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oP-rkzJ6yZw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oP-rkzJ6yZw
hbosch 7y ago
No, not really. Reporting on real-time events, rather than past events, generally relies heavily on tips and sources to fully develop a story.
pjc50 7y ago
How else are reporters supposed to find this stuff out?
- u801e 7y ago
  A lot of articles these days source their material from various social media posts. There are some articles where the vast majority of the content comes from embedded Twitter posts.

kevingadd 7y ago

It's very common lately for online press when it comes to breaking news. I see it from many outlets not just TC

sgrove 7y ago

I believe their entire credibility model is largely based on this, as per the TechCrunch founder himself at Startup School back in 2008 https://youtu.be/HbUnatPfSgg?t=238 https://youtu.be/HbUnatPfSgg?t=238 (the whole talk is certainly a trip back in time!) I remember listening to that and thinking, "So.... the info I have on close friends and business is valuable, and I should potentially sell it out to TC in order to curry favor." I wasn't in SVBA at the time, and even then I felt that it didn't quite match the spirit of the valley (I still believe that to be the case, having been here for 10+ years now).

manfredo 7y ago

Requests for people with firsthand accounts are things I see from reputable sources like the Economist, and the New York Times. So I don't think it's particularly unprofessional - maybe asking for "tips" is less professional than "we welcome hearing your accounts of the events". That said, I don't hold Tech Crunch in very high regard. I take most of their reporting with a grain of salt, and assume most articles are exaggerated to attract more attention.

simtel20 7y ago

The only thing that makes a journalist a journalist is having sources. Any reasonable solicitation for those sources is professional and appropriate.

blawson 7y ago

The BBC has (and has been made fun of for having) a text box at the bottom of a lot of their articles requesting input from readers on how they are impacted: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51949243 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51949243 Making fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oP-rkzJ6yZw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oP-rkzJ6yZw

hbosch 7y ago

No, not really. Reporting on real-time events, rather than past events, generally relies heavily on tips and sources to fully develop a story.

pjc50 7y ago

How else are reporters supposed to find this stuff out?

u801e 7y ago
A lot of articles these days source their material from various social media posts. There are some articles where the vast majority of the content comes from embedded Twitter posts.